We are back

Last dinner at our house

Fond farewell to the 20 year old can of shaving cream that came with the house.

August 31st came and someone pulled the plug on summer. The pizza shop has no line, there is much less variety of produce in the market, people are stocking up on hugh amounts of sauce tomatoes, potatoes, and dried beans. People can be seen gathering berries and nuts along the roads. Squirrel season.

The leaves sound the dry, rustle of autumn. The sunflowers, that were merely babies when we got here, are brown stocks in the fields. School was still in session and today the janitor was mowing and sweeping up around the building. A season has passed. The temperature has dropped from in the high 30s to a low of 11 yesterday. Translating that to the real world: high 30s; you think you will die if you walk outside in the afternoon: eleven: you wear jeans and a t-shirt and roll up your car windows, you carry your light jacket, but do not need it; 15 car windows re-open.


It is not that fun to wring out cold wet laundry when it is under 20 degrees. The laundry does not dry: even after hanging out there all day. The sun has moved at least 35 degrees to the south where it sets at 6:30 instead of 9pm. Gardens are finishing up. It has rained more this week than all summer.







And then the turn around! Summer returns. We have four great beach days. It roads aren’t crowded, it isn’t too hot and the beaches are not filled with people.

Last day on the beach

The big festival of San Francesco will happen without us. The stage is still there, because of the lack of vendors in the market. Christmas, other festivals, days spent in the piazza, days snowed in: all will happen here. A quarter of a world away we will dream of next summer. Our maps, like seed catalogs, spread on the kitchen table.

Be sure to tune in next summer for all your old favorites: Shoes of the Day!, Small Things, Amazing English Sayings on T-shirts and new, important stories like: What to do When You Can’t Figure Out How to Flush the Toilet;  How to spot a Dane, Great or Otherwise;  How to not Die While Driving in Italy. Better yet, visit us in Italy.
Until then, arrivaderci e bouno fortuno!

Our favorite: Stone beach

Last day in Italy

Rome airport still looking good

Dublin airport: not bad

JFK: I have seen better